The Insura-Preneur Podcast

The Insurance Agency Leadership Challenge

Jim Kouzes, WSJ Best-Selling Author, The Leadership Challenge

Whether you’re recruiting talent or guiding your agency to new strategies, your business demands the clarity, vision, and direction of a strong leader. In this conversation, Jim Kouzes delivers straight talk to agency principals. Jim is the author of The Leadership Challenge, a WSJ Best-Seller and Fast Company’s Best Business Book of the year. Jim was declared one of the twelve best educators in the U.S. 

 

In this eye-opening discussion, Jim shares:

 

• A 5-step model to becoming a stronger, better, and more respected leader for your team and customers
• The best actions to take as the industry changes faster and presents new challenges
• The top qualities that research reveals teams want most from their leaders

 

Challenging times call on us to be our best, and the success of your business rests on rising to the challenge. Be sure to listen in as Jim delivers actionable answers to help guide your agency to a strong and profitable future.

Simplifying Life for Agent and Customer Alike

Nobody is a fan of the insurance application process, especially not your busy customers. Peter MacDonald, Cofounder, and CEO of Wunderite sees a better way to do things—where technology handles the heavy lifting to make life simpler for agents and customers alike. 

 

In this robust discussion, Peter and Michael discuss:

 

• How agencies can recruit and retain talent in a competitive job market
• What agents are doing now to simplify the application process
• Understanding the key triggers that drive people to purchase insurance
• How agency principals should structure their technology buying process

 

If growing efficiently is a goal for your agency, make this conversation a priority and learn how agencies are solving stubborn industry problems. 

 

Presented by Agency Revolution, the Connected Insurance Podcast provides bi-weekly opportunities for listeners to dive deep into the trends affecting insurance agents and brokers today and to gain proven strategies and tactics for agency growth. Our hosts facilitate thoughtful panels and 1:1 conversations with a variety of prominent thought leaders, with a focus on how to streamline and drive operational efficiency for your independent agency through the intelligent use of technology.

How This Agency Gew from $1.5 Million to $100 Million

Mike Mathisen, CEO, Owner, Colorado Insurance

"I bought a small, $1.5 million premium book. We had an 85% retention rate. Now, we're pushing $100 million in premium with a 93% retention." Mike Mathisen, President, Colorado Insurance, made a few key, strategic decisions in the year 2000. 21 years and almost $99 million in new premium later, Mike looks back and shares key insights to the secrets of super-high Organic Growth:

 

• The method Mike uses to keep his team focused on key growth indicators
• Mike’s strategy to achieve high retention on a super-sized book of business
• His twist on the traditional structure to turn his agency into an policy selling machine

 

If you want proven growth strategies, this may be the most important conversation you’ve heard in a long time. Get inspired with proven, practical strategies. 

 

Presented by Agency Revolution, the Connected Insurance Podcast provides bi-weekly opportunities for listeners to dive deep into the trends affecting insurance agents and brokers today and to gain proven strategies and tactics for agency growth. Our hosts facilitate thoughtful panels and 1:1 conversations with a variety of prominent thought leaders, with a focus on how to streamline and drive operational efficiency for your independent agency through the intelligent use of technology.

How Tech Enhances the Human Touch

Luis Pino, CEO, Founder, Agentero

Many insurance agents push back on new technologies in fear of losing the human touch. Luis Pino, CEO & Founder of Agentero and former Analyst at McKinsey & Co., believes the right use of tech will do just the opposite, freeing you up for more human touches and supporting you where expertise is most needed. 

 

Luis shares insights on the fast-moving world of agency distribution and technology: 

 

• How to use new tech to enhance the agent’s role as a trusted advisor
• Simple ways tech will free your time so you can focus on what matters most
• Using tech to analyze your book of business and uncover hidden opportunities and unseen threats

 

Listen to this episode to catch up on the accelerating trends impacting the independent insurance agency system. 

 

Presented by Agency Revolution, the Connected Insurance Podcast provides bi-weekly opportunities for listeners to dive deep into the trends affecting insurance agents and brokers today and to gain proven strategies and tactics for agency growth. Our hosts facilitate thoughtful panels and 1:1 conversations with a variety of prominent thought leaders, with a focus on how to streamline and drive operational efficiency for your independent agency through the intelligent use of technology.

How This Agency Grew Their Top Niche 30% YoY

Marc Petersen, President, American Advantage - Petersen Group

How did Marc Petersen, President of American Advantage - Petersen Group, pull off such fantastic growth results? Most agencies do it by “hiring more producers,” but for this agency, the secret to success was a robust communication strategy. 

In this revealing podcast discussion, Marc openly shares his strategy for rapid and reliable growth:

• Why building the right content for your audience changes everything
• Marc’s strategy for nurturing his growing leads list and converting them into clients
• How the content strategy de-emphasizes insurance to get the conversation started

If organic growth is important to your insurance agency, make this conversation a priority. Marc holds nothing back and offers practical ideas that can transform your agency quickly.

The Near Future of Insurtech

Agents who are serious about the growth of their agency need to know what the future looks like. And if anyone has a crystal ball, it would be Susanne Chishti. Editor of The Insurtech Book, CEO of FINTECH Circle, and Investment Week’s “Social Media Influencer of the Year,” Susanne is a leading insurtech investor, and winner of too many awards to list here. 

In this robust conversation, Susanne shares her perspective on:

• What insurtech will likely look like in the near and midterm future for agencies
• Changes coming to personal and small commercial lines markets
• The three most important keys to success for agents to thrive in the future
• Trends in Asia and Europe that are foreshadowing changes in the U.S. market

If you’re serious about how to compete over the next few years, do not miss this conversation. 

Presented by Agency Revolution, the Connected Insurance Podcast provides bi-weekly opportunities for listeners to dive deep into the trends affecting insurance agents and brokers today and to gain proven strategies and tactics for agency growth. Our hosts facilitate thoughtful panels and 1:1 conversations with a variety of prominent thought leaders, with a focus on how to streamline and drive operational efficiency for your independent agency through the intelligent use of technology.

Thought Leadership: 9 Steps to Stand Out

The internet gave everyone a megaphone. Every business is a communications business, and the airwaves are full of noise, clamor, and confusion. How can your agency stand out from the crowd? To be the one your market listens to, respects, and follows? Michael Jans shares his journey for finding the answer with thought leadership marketing.

Listen now to hear Michael share:

• The 4 building blocks of thought leadership marketing
• A step-by-step method to earn the attention that becomes long-term loyalty
• Why thought leadership marketing generates high-quality leads and earns maximum customer lifetime value

If marketing with integrity and authority, and becoming the obvious choice in your market is important to you, don’t miss this special episode of the Connected Insurance Podcast.

A Commercial Desk Breakthrough

Commercial lines producers know the desk can be chaos—making it harder to provide clients with a great experience without getting overworked. Erik Mitisek, CEO of Highwing believes he’s solving that problem with a multi-carrier and multi-line platform that slashes time and cuts out the confusion. 

In this conversation, Erik shares his perspective on what today’s agency must know and do: 

• Why “the biggest currency is speed” and how agencies can move faster than their competitors with the right tools
• How to use data to make the right decisions to grow your agency
• How agencies can change the way they take risks in order to maximize innovation and minimize mistakes

If your agency has any commercial lines business, you don’t want to miss this podcast.

What Agents Need to Know Today

Lucas Jans, VP, Product, Agency Revolution

 

Technology has been changing everything from consumer behavior to carrier strategy to agency operations. Lucas Jans, VP of Product at Agency Revolution, has been building tech solutions for insurance agencies for more than 20 years. With one of the industry’s largest tech teams, he oversees a constant stream of updates, product innovations, and new technologies with the goal of making tech useful and easy for agents to use. 

 

In this important podcast, Luke and Michael discuss the future of the insurance agency with insights on:

 

• Why it’s not about the tech, but the real problems it solves for agents and clients
• How agency leaders can think differently about tech and confidently make the right decisions
• Where agencies are headed due to new technologies

 

If getting tech right and preparing for future changes is important to your agency, make this conversation a priority. 

 

Presented by Agency Revolution, the Connected Insurance Podcast provides bi-weekly opportunities for listeners to dive deep into the trends affecting insurance agents and brokers today and to gain proven strategies and tactics for agency growth. Our hosts facilitate thoughtful panels and 1:1 conversations with a variety of prominent thought leaders, with a focus on how to streamline and drive operational efficiency for your independent agency through the intelligent use of technology.

Instant Insurance from Independent Agencies

Steve Lekas, Co-Founder, CEO, Branch Insurance

 

Branch Insurance has convinced some of the top investors that it’s cracked the code on “instant insurance” for independent agencies—and it’s convincing more and more consumers of the same. How? By asking fewer underwriting questions. Name and address don’t just get you a quote, it gets you one click from binding insurance. 

 

In this episode, Branch Insurance Co-Founder and CEO shares insights and secrets on:

 

• How public data is transforming the client acquisition process
• What consumers have declared they wish would change about insurance today
• How independent agencies can catch up to the demand for convenience

 

Listen to this episode now to learn how Branch Insurance is trying to transform the industry from within, and how they’re bringing agents along for the ride. 

 

Presented by Agency Revolution, the Connected Insurance Podcast provides bi-weekly opportunities for listeners to dive deep into the trends affecting insurance agents and brokers today and to gain proven strategies and tactics for agency growth. Our hosts facilitate thoughtful panels and 1:1 conversations with a variety of prominent thought leaders, with a focus on how to streamline and drive operational efficiency for your independent agency through the intelligent use of technology.